The Quiet Boat Ride and Other Stories (Fox + Chick #2)
Author and Illustrator: Sergio Ruzzier
Published: March 5th, 2019
Summary: Opposite personalities attract for these two unlikely friends: In the second book of this lauded series, Fox and Chick are off on three new adventures involving a boat ride, a mysterious box, and an early morning trip to see the sunrise. Despite the antics ensuing from their different personalities, the contradictory duo always manages to have fun together.
Teachers’ Tools for Navigation and Discussion Questions:
Please view and enjoy the teachers’ guide I created for Chronicle Books for The Quiet Boat Ride:
The Witch of Woodland
Author: Laurel Snyder
Published: May 16th, 2023 by Walden Pond Press
Summary: Laurel Snyder, author of Orphan Island, returns with a story of one girl’s quest to answer the seemingly unanswerable questions about what makes us who we are.
Hi, whoever is reading this. I’m Zipporah Chava McConnell, but everyone calls me Zippy.
Things used to be simple—until a few weeks ago. Now my best friend, Bea, is acting funny; everyone at school thinks I’m weird; and my mom is making me start preparing for my bat mitzvah, even though we barely ever go to synagogue. In fact, the only thing that still seems to make sense is magic.
See, the thing is, I’m a witch. I’ve been casting spells since I was little. And even if no one else wants to believe in magic anymore, it’s always made sense to me, always felt true. But I was still shocked the day I found a strange red book at the library and somehow…I conjured something. A girl, actually. A beautiful girl with no memory, and wings like an angel. You probably don’t believe me, but I swear it’s the truth.
Miriam is like no one else I’ve ever met. She’s proof that magic is real. And, it’s hard to explain this part, but I just know that we’re connected. That means it’s up to me to help Miriam figure out what she is and where she came from. If I can do that, maybe everything else in my life will start to make sense too.
Anyway, it’s worth a try.
About the Author: Laurel Snyder is the beloved author of many picture books and novels for children, including the National Book Award nominee Orphan Island and the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner Charlie & Mouse. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, she teaches in Hamline University’s MFA in writing for children and young adults program. Laurel lives in Atlanta with her family and can be found online at www.laurelsnyder.com.
Review: Zippy was so happy; her best friend Bea and her bonded over magic and everything has been Bea and Zippy since then and it has been wonderful. Then 7th grade begins and Bea is different and Zippy is not. This leads to Zippy feeling socially isolated and just so different than everyone else, a feeling that so many middle schoolers & those us of who went through middle school, will understand. This is the feeling that the book starts with–Zippy just wants someone who understands her again. This is the foundation for the rest of the book.
Laurel Snyder’s middle grade writing always enchants me, and Witch of Woodland is no different. Her characters in Witch are so easy to connect with (including her parents, who I love are included in such a realistic way), the magic she includes is captivating and unique, and her stories are unlike anyone else’s. What got me the most about this book, though, is Zippy. Zippy is special. She is a walking contradiction, just like many early teens are: she is strong and weak, confident and insecure, magical and human, quiet and loud, angry and optimistic… she is all of this and more, and none of that changes, though she evolves and grows in a way that she is just a better version of her same self. Zippy makes this book, everything else just supports her.
I want to note with this review that I am not Jewish, so I did not comment on the religious aspects of the book as I do not have the prior knowledge to do so. However, I did learn a lot about Jewish religion and faith through this book.
Teachers’ Tools for Navigation and Discussion Questions:
Please view and enjoy the publisher-shared Educators’ Guide:
Recommended For:
**Thank you to Walden Pond Press for providing a copy for review!**
The Greatest Kid in the World
Author: John David Anderson
Published: May 9, 2023 by Walden Pond Press
Summary: From the beloved author of Posted comes the story of Zeke Stahls—a thoroughly average twelve-year-old who somehow finds himself in a competition to be named the World’s Greatest Kid.
Zeke Stahls is not the best kid in the world. Some days he struggles just to be good. He’d rather be pulling pranks than doing extra credit, and he’s too busy performing experiments on his little brother, Nate, or tormenting his older sister, Jackie, to volunteer for charity.
Which is why Zeke and his entire family are shocked when they receive word that he has been selected as a contestant in an online competition to find the World’s Greatest Kid.
Zeke has no idea how he was chosen for this, and he knows that measuring up to the other nominees–a saintly lineup of selfless, charming and talented do-gooders with photogenic smiles and hearts of gold–is hopeless. Still, with a $10,000 cash prize on the line, and Zeke’s mom struggling to hold the family together on her single-parent salary, he decides to give it his best shot.
As Zeke concocts various plots to show the world just how “great” he is, however, he finds himself wondering what that word even means, and who gets to decide. And what kind of kid he wants–and needs–to be.
About the Author: John David Anderson is the author of many highly acclaimed books for kids, including the New York Times Notable Book Ms. Bixby’s Last Day, Posted, Granted, One Last Shot, and Stowaway. A dedicated root beer connoisseur and chocolate fiend, he lives with his wonderful wife, two frawesome kids, and clumsy cat, Smudge, in Indianapolis, Indiana. You can visit him online at www.johndavidanderson.org.
Review: There is more than one way to be great. This is a concept that kids have a hard time seeing (and adults!). For example, the kid who gets the highest grades may be great, but a kid who watches his siblings and takes care of his house while his adult works is also great. But what makes THE greatest? That is the question within John David Anderson’s newest book. Zeke knows he is not the greatest, but maybe he doesn’t know him self too well since he is chosen to be a finalist in the World’s Greatest Kid competition. Can a kid who causes trouble, does pranks, gets sent to the principals office, and torments his oldest sister be a great kid?
Just like every other Anderson book I’ve ever read (which is most of his!), I found the story to be unique, well written, and engaging. He always surprises me because his books differ so tremendously from each other! This time, what made the story for me was the characters. Everyone had flaws but everyone was loveable: Zeke reminds me of so many kids I know and have taught–wonderful and exhausting; his sister, Jasmine, was dealing with her own transitions much like most teenagers; Logan, the cameraman, was the surprise favorite character (read & you’ll see why!); Nate, Zeke’s brother, is just a ball of joy; and Zeke’s mom is one that any adult with empathize with, and I want to give her a hug! The story itself is quiet, but these characters are loud and will fill your heart as you read.
Teachers’ Tools for Navigation and Discussion Questions:
Discussion questions and activities can be found in the publisher shared Educators’ Guide:
In 2017, my husband and I survived Hurricane Irma in Lee County, Florida. 130 mph gusts right over our house! That same year, the Tubbs wildfire roared through Napa, Sonoma, and Lake County in California. My husband and I had moved from Sonoma county, where we’d lived 35 years, to Florida just a few years before. The fire destroyed the homes of a number of friends, including our goddaughter’s. Disasters seemed to surround us.
When Raccoon’s home is destroyed by lightning in One Small Thing, Mouse says, “It’s such a BIG catastrophe! And we’re so small.” Catastrophes can paralyze. Children can feel overwhelmed with concern and helplessness when they experience a natural disaster or when a calamity happens to someone in their community. One Small Thing offers examples of how each of us, child or adult, can use our energy and talent to spread kindness.
It’s especially important to spread kindness during difficult times, but it’s also important to spread kindness on a daily basis. Doing “one small thing” daily will help children understand their feelings, understand others’ feelings, and assist them in making empathetic decisions. Small actions daily will help them be ready to communicate and act when a “big catastrophe” happens.
*How did each animal feel when they learned about what happened to Raccoon
*Squirrel felt so sad, he couldn’t move. Do you ever feel there is too much to be fixed? Do you ever feel things are so hard or sad you may as well give up?
*Which animal felt they didn’t have anything to offer, that there was nothing they could do? (Mouse) *How do you feel when something scary or bad happens?
*What makes you feel better when you are scared or sad?
After the discussion, have the children talk about “one small thing” they could do as a class.
Lead the children to try a couple of activities for others. Perhaps start with “one small thing” for animal friends.
My educator friend is planning to read One Small Thing to a class and then work with them to make Cookie Cutter Bird Feeders. There are several slightly different “recipes” online; she plans to try this one. She hasn’t tried this yet, but folks who have say this will make several cookie cutter bird feeders.
Materials Needed
2 cups small birdseed (Have extra in case you need to thicken the mixture more.)
2 packets unflavored gelatin (8 gram packets)
2/3 cup water
Spoon
Twine or Ribbon
(Plastic Straws, if using straws to poke the holes)
Cookie cutters – (Stars and acorns are fun.)
Baking sheets
Parchment paper
What to do
Place parchment paper on baking sheets.
Place cookie cutters on baking sheets. Set these to the side.
In a mixing bowl place 2/3 cup boiled water and 2 packet of gelatin. You can also do this on a stove in a pan.
Stir until the gelatin is dissolved, a minute or two.
Stir in 2 cups birdseed until most of the liquid is absorbed.
Tie a piece of twine or ribbon into a loop. (Some prefer to place a straw in the birdseed cookies to make a hole. After the cookies dry, the twine or ribbon can be pulled through and tied.)
Fill a cookie cutter halfway with birdseed, using a spoon. Press the birdseed down with the back of the spoon.
Push the tied part of string into the birdseed.
Fill the cookie cutter with the rest of the birdseed mixture.
Some place the cookie cutters in the refrigerator for a few hours to set. Others simply move on to drying.
Dry the birdseed cookies overnight.
Turn the birdseed cookies over and let the other side dry overnight.
Carefully push the bird seed feeder out of the cookie cutter.
Hang the birdseed cookies from tree branches or a bird feeding station.
Now you might have the children brainstorm “one small thing” they could do as a class for a person. Is there an Assisted Living Residence or Retirement Community nearby that would appreciate colorful cards? You might choose a holiday like May Day and have the children draw colorful flowers on folded paper with a brief message like “Happy May Day!” or “May Basket” and their name.
These two activities seem like small things to do…but that is the point. They are small, but lots of small things add up to something wonderful. May the gentle, cozy message of One Small Thing add to the social emotional learning canon and to kindness, all around.
About the Book: After Raccoon’s home burns down in a lightning storm, his friends don’t know what they can do to help. Squirrel, Beaver, Mouse, Badger, and Rabbit all go back to their own homes, trying to focus on something other than Raccoon’s tragedy. But each animal discovers one small thing they can do for Raccoon–and it turns out that each small act may not be so small after all.
One Small Thing is a gentle and powerful look at how small actions can make a big impact.
About the Author: Called a “born storyteller” by the media, Marsha Diane Arnold is a picture book author of 24 books, with over one million books sold. Her books have garnered honors like Best First Book by a New Author (Heart of a Tiger), Smithsonian Notable (The Pumpkin Runner), and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (Roar of a Snore). Her bilingual Galápagos Girl won the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature. Lights Out, about light pollution, has been praised by the Dark Sky community as well as the children’s lit community and was a finalist for the SCBWI Golden Kite Award for Picture Book Text.
Marsha enjoys sharing her love of story through school visits, manuscript consultations, her Writing Wonderful Character-Driven Picture Books e-course, and especially by reading to her four grandchildren.
Growing up on the Kansas prairies, Marsha lived in Northern California for most of her life. Now she lives with her husband in southwest Florida, near the Caloosahatchee River and her daughter’s family and only a short flight from her son’s family. Besides creating stories, her favorite activities are scuba diving and snorkeling, hiking, traveling, gardening, and climbing trees.
I am so lucky because my principal began an initiative at my school where we get to have an author visit our school yearly (2022: Nathan Hale, 2020: Neal Shusterman, 2019: Jennifer A. Nielsen). The author sees all students in the school, so it is a great community literacy event for my school, and I love being able to bring this experience to all 1200+ students each year!
This year, we hosted Christina Diaz Gonzalez!
The visit was phenomenal and included 5 presentations for approximately 240 kids, book signings, and a small presentation in Spanish for our emerging bilingual students who have been in the US for a year or less. It was all such an amazing experience!
Here are some reflections from my students from after the visit. I asked them to think about what they learned, what they enjoyed, how they were impacted, or anything else they wanted to share:
The Christina Diaz Gonzalez visit was something I will cherish forever. I learned to normalize authors and realize how authors are real people and how they’re not magical beings with neverending ideas. I enjoyed how she managed to keep the presentation light and sweet but as well as interactive, she made me interested in so many more of her books!…I love how she reminds us how important Hispanic Representation is. These author trips are something I will forever cherish when I go to High School. Thank you for putting the effort and time into doing this Mrs. Moye! I really appreciate it!
[The visit] impacted me because it showed me that I could accomplish my dreams.
I learned that you can pursue whatever you like and you should be passionate about what you want to do.
I learned a lot from her visit to our school, and it was really cool! I learned about how it could be a struggle to write a book, and how 1 book or author can inspire someone. I really liked how she got to answer my question, and how a lot of people cared to ask many questions which made it even more detailed and fun to listen to stories. I feel like it impacted me, and some other people, to encourage them to be an author. I am currently writing a book, and her amazing books are encouraging me to finish my book. I am so glad she came because it was really cool to see an author explain and show about writing books.
I’m glad she came because her whole presentation was just amazing, I liked that I had the opportunity to meet her and I liked the tips she gave us and of course, the stories that she told us.
I am glad she came because in my other school we never got a visit like this one.
Well, I really enjoyed how much Christina Diaz Gonzalez was like an everyday person. You see famous people on the back of book coves, and their names on movie posters, and things like that. You expect them to be a different way. You expect them to be different from everybody else. But that’s obviously not the case seeing as many actors, authors, and directors all act just as normal as everyday people. Christina Diaz Gonzalez seemed just as normal as me and I respect her a lot for this.
I very much enjoyed how she let us ask questions, and I liked the questions that the kids asks.
This visit also made me think differently about books like how you can relate to a story really easily or learn something new every day.
From the Christina Diaz Gonzalez visit, I learned that being an author is harder than people may think. I enjoyed that she was fun. She spoke in a way where you can’t really get too bored or bored at all and she showed us those cool trailers of her books. This impacted me by meeting someone who’s Cuban. I don’t ever meet any others that are Cuban.
I learned that she has a similar childhood to some of the people at the school that don’t know how to speak English or understand it. I’m glad she came because the whole school knew about her books and to be able to see those students that were so excited to meet her happy and to get to know her more.
What I learned from yesterday was that Christiana Diaz Gonzalez is an inspiring author that uses her family to help write her books, which I enjoyed. It inspired me to try to write my own stories about my family. I am glad she came to HCMS because she has a difficult past, and I have had one too.
During the part where she was talking about her very first story that she had written, it made me think about how creativity really does come from anything. A little thought can slowly grow and grow, it just needs a little bit of effort added into it, so that impacted me to open my eyes and “see beyond” generic ideas.
As you can see, Christina’s visit was highly engaging and inspiring. I would highly recommend her for a school visit!
A few years ago, I was visiting my brother Chris in Los Angeles, where we spent several days recalling memorable stories from our youth. We shared lots of laughs, but one story in particular that we fondly remembered took place in 1958 and centered around our search for a nearby place to play ball. As kids, my brother and I were passionate about the game of baseball. We loved the Dodgers, who had just moved to L.A. from Brooklyn, New York.
Chris suggested I write the story down and that eventually led to the publishing of my most recent illustrated children’s book, Can We Play Baseball, Mr. DeMille?
Writing the story brought back many great memories, not the least of which was an unforgettable encounter with perhaps the greatest and most legendary person in film. But going through the process of producing the book also made me even more cognizant of how my childhood search for a field to play ball influenced my later work as an environmental advocate and a proponent of outdoor spaces for all to enjoy.
The neighborhood I lived in as a boy was beautiful, but it was also located in the hills. There were very few appropriate and accessible places to play ball. In addition, public parks were too far away for young kids like us to get to on our own.
It was those circumstances that ultimately led us to Mr. DeMille’s backyard which, rightly or wrongly, became the “the field of our dreams.”
Fast forwarding to current day, I’ve long believed that from a city planning perspective, we should do everything possible to ensure that residents— especially kids— have nearby access to sports fields and places to play ball. In addition, ensuring that more natural parks are readily accessible to all is a key issue. Many youngsters don’t get exposed to nature and the outdoors as much as we’d like, particularly in cities. The alternative often becomes screen-time for children. If not used thoughtfully and moderately, we know from research this can have detrimental effects on both mental and physical health. After all, how can a kid get excited to play outside if they don’t have the space?
For those that read Can We Play Baseball Mr. DeMille, my hope is that the story of a young boy’s love for a game and his dogged determination to find a place where he and his friends can play, will make you smile and inspire young ones. To this day, while watching my own grandchildren play ball, I still find myself thinking back on occasion to those early days and the field of my youth that had such an impression.
The book has several elements to it, including a sense of nostalgia along with a slice of classic Hollywood history. But just as importantly, it has an environmental message that highlights the fact that accessible outdoor spaces are good for all of us, both young and old. From parks to sports fields, they provide active and passive recreational opportunities, contribute to our improved health and well-being, and make our communities better places to live!
Illustrated by Patricia & Robin DeWitt
Published January 30, 2023
About the Book: Set in 1958, a young boy and his friends want to be baseball players just like their Dodger idols. There’s just one problem: they don’t have a field to play in.
Luckily, the kids know a secret. There’s a mansion around the corner with a yard big enough for an entire ball field and the hedge surrounding it has a gap just big enough to crawl through. Apparently, the owner is a big-time Hollywood mogul. He won’t mind a few ball games, right?
This sensational true story of a young boy’s encounter with a Hollywood legend is rich with youthful determination and summer fun, highlighting how every child needs space to play.
About the Author: Mark Angelo has been a baseball fan since he was a little boy! He is also a globally renowned river conservationist and the founder of World Rivers Day, now celebrated by millions of people in over one hundred countries. Among his many accolades, Mark is a recipient of the Order of Canada, the country’s highest honor. His acclaimed best-selling debut picture book, The Little Creek that Could, isthe true story of a stream that came back to life. Through his work with groups such as the Outdoor Recreation Council of BC, Mark has been a long-time advocate for outdoor spaces for all to enjoy. Can We Play Baseball, Mr. DeMille?, about a young boy’s search for a place to play ball, recounts an actual experience from his childhood. Mark lives in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada with his wife, Kathie.
To celebrate the release of Destiny Finds Her Way by Newbery Honor winner Margarita Engle, blogs across the web are hosting guest posts from Margarita as well as the book’s photographer, Sam Trull, who is also the co-founder and Executive Director of the Sloth Institute — a sloth rescue organization based in Costa Rica. Join us for a journey behind the scenes of how these two amazingly talented women teamed up to bring this inspiring, true story to readers everywhere and learn more about sloths and the work being done to protect them.
Let Nonfiction Sing!
by Margarita Engle
Destiny Finds Her Way is a book I feel honored to have written. When I saw Sam Trull’s beautiful photos of Destiny the sloth, I decided to visit the Sloth Institute in Costa Rica. There, I had the chance to witness Sam in action, rescuing baby sloths and teaching them how to live in the wild. The experience was inspiring.
I wanted to write Destiny’s story in a way that might inspire young readers to learn more about wildlife conservation. The tropical rain forest has its own rhythm, and poetry is musical language. However, nonfiction is usually presented in a more detailed prose style. I decided to combine poetic devices with facts. The first device I used is onomatopoeia, where words resemble their real-life sources. Examples are the eee, eee, eee of darting squirrel monkeys, and ah, ah of a frightened baby sloth. Instead of rhymes at the ends of lines, I included words with vowels that rhyme. In ‘macaws squawking,’ all the “a “sounds rhyme. I’m sure readers will be able to find many other parts of the story that sound musical.
Readers will also discover the other senses—sight, smell, touch, taste, as well as sound. In addition, movement is an important aspect of the story’s musical nature. I hope words like scratched, swayed, and climbed will help make Destiny’s journey come to life in a joyful, dancelike way. There is nothing more celebratory than knowing she is now healthy and free in the wild!
(ages 4-8, Hardcover Picture Book, National Geographic Kids Books)
Newbery Honor winner Margarita Engle and photographer and Sloth Institute Executive Director Sam Trull team up to bring the inspiring and true story to life of how Destiny, a motherless baby sloth, sightless in one eye and rescued by Sam in the Costa Rican rain forest, defies the odds, overcomes her obstacles of limited sight and learns the skills she will need to return to her wild, forest home.
Without her mother to protect her or teach her, Destiny is found and taken to a rescue center in Costa Rica. The little sloth soon befriends other orphaned sloths. Her poor eyesight, however, makes it hard for her to keep her balance. Eventually Destiny begins to use all of her senses to explore the world around her. But can she learn to climb? Can she master the other skills she needs to survive on her own? And will Destiny be brave enough to return to her wild, forest home?
In addition to learning about Destiny and her journey, readers are immersed in the world of sloths and sloth rescue in this uplifting story about overcoming obstacles and believing in yourself.
About the Author:
Margarita Engle is the Cuban-American author of many verse novels, memoirs, and picture books, including The Surrender Tree, Enchanted Air, Drum Dream Girl, and Dancing Hands. Awards include a Newbery Honor, Pura Belpré, Golden Kite, Walter, Jane Addams, PEN U.S.A., and NSK Neustadt, among others. Margarita served as the national 2017-2019 Young People’s Poet Laureate. She is a three-time U.S. nominee for the Astrid Lindgren Book Award. Her most recent books are Rima’s Rebellion, Singing With Elephants, and Destiny Finds Her Way. Her next young adult verse novel is Wings in the Wild, and her next picture book is Water Day.
Margarita was born in Los Angeles, but developed a deep attachment to her mother’s homeland during childhood summers with relatives on the island. She studied agronomy and botany along with creative writing, and now lives in central California with her husband.
Sam Trull has been a photographer and a wildlife biologist for decades. After many expeditions to Madagascar, West Africa, and Central America, in January 2013, she settled in Costa Rica, where she co-founded and is the executive director of the Sloth Institute. Her first photo book, Slothlove, was published in April 2016.
The Sloth Institute (TSI) is a nonprofit organization located in Costa Rica with the mission to enhance and expand the welfare and conservation of sloths through rescue, rehabilitation, release, research, and education. In addition, TSI works on targeted conservation projects to improve the safety and quality of sloth habitats and teaches other rescue centers how to better care for and release their sloths. TSI believes that all sloths were born to be wild and deserve that second chance at freedom.
